Author: gbump

Progress moves slowly and requires patience. At the University of Wisconsin at Madison, a group of strategic learning technology consultants descend on the institution’s schools and colleges to cultivate long-term relationships with faculty members and students. Over time, some of them have transformed traditional classrooms into active learning spaces, simply by demonstrating sustained interest in the course material and a good-faith willingness to collaborate with subject matter experts.

We can’t tackle rural social and economic issues without first understanding them and perhaps reflecting on our own rural biases. This reminder wasn’t always necessary. The traditional land-grant missions of many flagship state universities — the University of Wisconsin, Texas A&M University, the University of Missouri, Washington State University, and the University of Georgia, among many others — included embracing the goals of public engagement, service, and information outreach. Professors were rightly viewed as public servants of both taxpayers and students.

Barry Gerhart, acting dean and senior associate dean for faculty and research at the Wisconsin School of Business at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, was named interim dean of the school. A search for a new permanent dean is expected to begin in September.

Last October, protesters at the University of Wisconsin at Madison marched outside a building where an invited lecturer (TownHall.com editor Katie Pavlich) was speaking.

State lawmakers are considering a proposal to offer financial incentives to out-of-state students who graduate from University of Wisconsin System schools and stay in Wisconsin after graduation.

Jessica Tormey, vice president for university relations and chief of staff at the University of Wisconsin system, resigned in January after pleading guilty to drunken driving.

In 2016, the regents of the University of Wisconsin system revised its post-tenure review policy to include tenured professors receiving an independent review by an administrator every five years. The faculty saw that as clearing the way for administrators to overturn performance reviews done by professors’ peers.

The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents has approved a policy change to allow board members to accept gifts from UW System campuses and foundations, including tickets to sporting events or concerts.